The Streets
by Kama Kounsolour
Summary: Sequel to The Beach House. Zack joins a gang and slowly is pulled into the dark world of sex drugs and violence. Cody gets Mikhail to help him get Zack out of the gang life before its too late. Along the way Cody learns more about Mikhail. Sex and violenc
1. A Changed Zack

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Cody had no idea what to do. His brother had been gone for almost the entire day and no one saw him at all. He was probably out with those kids who befriended him. Cody had seen he and his brother slowly drifting apart through the last month and it was really hurting him. Zack would come home and when their mom would ask where he was, he would just say 'out' and head to his room to listen to music until dinner, which he would quickly eat and then head back to his room. Carrey was really worried about Zack since he was no longer the 'little man' that she had known for so long. At first she thought it was just a puberty thing, but she quickly saw that he was changing far too quickly for it to be puberty related. She didn't like those new friends of his since she just had a really bad feeling about them. She kept feeling that they were pulling her son into something bad. It was killing her from within.

Cody and Justin are in the arcade, playing the new release of Street Fighter 4, and Justin was whipping Cody severely. Suddenly, Cody looks over and sees his brother with a jacket which read 'Emerald Vypers' on the back. He also noticed Zack's black eye. Cody rushes over and starts to check on him.

"My god, Zack, what happened?"

"Nothing." Cody looks at his brother with a 'do you think I'm stupid' glare. Zack just turns his head and starts for the elevator, "Whatever, just leave me alone." Cody knew that Zack was growing apart from him, but he wasn't going to allow Zack to get beat up and just let it walk over him.

"No, I will not leave you alone until you tell me what happened. If not me, than mom will surely ask…"

"OK, I was initiated…you happy?" Zack says rather quickly. Cody's eyes go wide.

"You're in a gang? Oh god…"

"You just don't understand, Cody. They listen to me, they treat me like family."

"Until you end up dead on a street corner!" Cody shouts back. Zack suddenly punches Cody right in the face and storms out of the lobby. Mr. Moseby rushes over and helps Cody up, who was bleeding from the nose. Moseby quickly brings Cody to his room and tells Carrey what happened. Carrey falls onto the couch and starts to cry.

"I feared that this would happen one day." Carrey says between tears. Cody rushes out of the room, and heads to the one person who he thinks can bring Zack back.

Cody pretty much bursts into The Shoelpkof's apartment, Jeffery playing his guitar, and Kim cooking. He quickly asks for where Mikhail is.

"He's in his room. Is something wrong?" asks Kim.

"Zack's joined a gang and I think he's been pulled into it too far." Jeffery and Kim look at each other with a strange look, as if they've been in this situation before, and suddenly, a door opens and out walks Mikhail. He looks at Cody and then Cody just breaks down and starts to cry.

"He punched me…he actually punched me." The three Shoelpkof's quickly rush over to help him but he just writhes out of their grip, "I just don't know what to do." Mikhail quickly leads Cody out of the room and starts to tell him it's ok.

"NO, it's NOT ok. He's no longer my brother. I don't know who he is anymore."

"LOOK!" The fierceness in Mikhail's voice shocks Cody, "I'm gonna help him. You have to come with me though." Cody slowly nods and they head out to the door.

Mikhail and Cody head out of the hotel and suddenly see a group of boys wearing the same jackets as Zack was. Cody points them out, and Mikhail heads over.

"Hey you, where's Zack Martin."

"You mean Tank? Why do you care, little shit?" Mikhail raised an eyebrow at the comment. He grabs the kid by the throat and starts to strangle him. The kid gasps for air and his three buddies are shocked by the immediate action taken against them. Mikhail looked at them and his eyes burned into them.

"Yea, you weren't expecting someone to actually fight back, did you?" One of the kids takes the beer bottle in his hand and smashes it over Mikhail's head. Mikhail's grip releases the kid but he looks right at the kid who hit him.

"The Eisen Jäger would wipe the floor with you." The kids look at him in confusion.

"What the fuck are you talking about, man? Your some German shithead or something." Mikhail lets off a slight smile before punching one of the kids right in the mouth, busting open his lip and the other kids charge Mikhail. Mikhail headbutts one in the face, kicks another in the stomach, punches another in the jaw, and grabs the last one by the throat. The kid looks at Mikhail in fear but tries to keep the bass in his voice.

"You're gonna regret this, PUNK!" The kid spits on Mikhail with the last word. Mikhail punches the kid in the jaw.

"Where's Zack?" The kid spits on Mikhail again.

"Go to hel…" He is cut off with another fierce punch. Mikhail looks into the kid's eyes.

"You think that you're a tough guy, don't you? Well, don't think that I won't kill you for information," The kid laughs at his threat, "I wouldn't be laughing if I were you," Suddenly Mikhail kicks the kid's leg in and it bends the wrong way, nearly breaking it. The kid screams in pain.

"ALRIGHT! He's…in the…Boroughs." Mikhail releases the kid and kicks another who was going to try to punch him. Cody looked on in shock. He knew that Mikhail was tough, but he didn't think that he would willingly break someone's knee just for information. Mikhail wipes the spit from his face and wipes it on his shirt.

"Don't worry, his knee isn't broken. We just gotta find Zack now."

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	2. The Failed Rescue

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Cody and Mikhail appear enter the alleys known as the Boroughs and quickly find Zack's blond hair from beneath a black bandanna. Mikhail grabs Zack and starts to drag him out but not before about 8 other kids block the way out and another two rip Zack out of his grip. Zack shrugs his pals off and slowly walks up to Mikhail.

"Just what do you want, Shoelpkof." Mikhail laughs.

"Wow, you've really been pulled in. What drugs are you taken?"

"Why the fuck do you care?" Mikhail just shakes his head.

"Come home, Zack."

"It's Tank now, and no, that isn't my home. This is my home now." Mikhail looks at the alley.

"Charming place to live."

"SHUT UP, SHOELPKOF! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT ITS LIKE TO BE ACCEPTED BY A GROUP OF PEOPLE!" Mikhail's laugh quickly disappears and his eyes become deathly serious.

"You are the one who has no fucking idea, 'Tank'". Zack swings at Mikhail and slams a fist right into Mikhail's jaw. Mikhail doesn't waver a single step and just looks back at Zack. Zack swings again but Mikhail grabs his arm and punches Zack right in the face. Zack stumbles back and his pals catch him before he falls. Mikhail looks at Zack and shakes his head.

"du machst dir keinen begriff, Zack" Zack punches Mikhail and Mikhail stumbles back, and he holds his mouth since blood was coming out, "Scheiße (shit)"

Cody was too afraid to enter the alley and watched as Mikhail was held in place as Zack punched away at the face of the kid who had been a great dear friend. Mikhail hurls the two members holding him in place off of him, and is met with a bombardment of fists and kicks. Mikhail is beat down severely and Zack takes a 2x4 and smashes it over the top of Mikhail's head, sending Mikhail crashing to the ground. When the group opens up, Cody sees a bloody faced Mikhail on the ground, but he slowly gets back to his feet and spits blood in Zack's face. Suddenly, the group opens up and up walks a tall kid of about 6'2 with long black hair and a black bandanna with gold lettering on it. Mikhail stands up onto his good leg and looks at the tall kid.

"Tyler Bettencourt, leader of the Emerald Vypers. I heard from someone in my group that you claim to be a member of Eisen Jäger." Mikhail looks at him with his worn eyes.

"Was…" Tyler slowly nods his head.

"How old are you, kid."

"17, you…" Mikhail manages.

"Same. So you were a part of Eisen Jäger, eh? It grew to be quite a dangerous group. And just how did you join it." Mikhail spits blood in Tyler's face and Tyler laughs as he wipes the red liquid from his face.

"Oh yes, definitely Eisen Jäger material. Let me guess, you are Sankt (Saint)." Mikhail slowly nods, "I recognize those eyes from the picture my cousin sent me. You were in it, I think you were 13 at the time but as deadly as any could get in the Eisen Jäger. He also told me about your little 'problem'." Mikhail was shaking in anger but the groups of members were keeping him held down.

"How do you know all this, Tyler?" Mikhail asks between each ragged breath.

"Because my cousin…is Hiltraud Brandt. I think you recognize that name." Mikhail's eyes go wide and he mutters something in German. Tyler squats right in front of Mikhail.

"es ist jammerschade (such a shame), you never knew that he would still be coming back to get you." Mikhail was shaking uncontrollably and the groups of members were having trouble keeping him down. Suddenly, Mikhail leaps to his feet and the members holding him down fly off and crash to the ground. Tyler holds up a hand to tell his followers to back off.

"I want to see if the all powerful 'Sankt' can 'bless' me like he did to those other 7 people." Mikhail leaps forward, only to get punched down again by the giant Tyler. Tyler picks up Mikhail and hurls him into a brick wall. Mikhail crashes to the ground. Tyler laughs as Mikhail slowly gets to his feet, only to fall to one knee.

"I guess Hiltraud was right, you sure got soft after that bitch of a great grandmother got to you." Mikhail leaps forward and slams all of his bodyweight right into Tyler's stomach, who collapses to the ground.

Cody looks as Mikhail starts to hurl huge punches into Tyler's face and Tyler struggles to cover his face. Tyler eventually hurls Mikhail off him and kicks Mikhail in the stomach violently and Mikhail coughs up blood. Tyler grunts as he wipes blood from his nose and mouth, "Huh. Guess you still got some of that fire in you. Get him out of here." Zack and a few others grab Mikhail and hurl him out of the alley. Zack looks at Cody and then just walks back into the alley. Cody lifts Mikhail's hurt form and drags him back to the Tipton.

Mikhail is quickly brought to his apartment and is cleaned of all the blood. A doctor came by and said that there was no internal bleeding and he just had some bad bruises and cuts. The doctor leaves and Kim cries over her son. Jeff punches the wall in anger.

"Who did this, Cody."

"A kid named Tyler. He claimed that he was a relative of Hiltraud Brandt or something. And he called Mikhail 'Sankt' or something." He could see something in Jeffery and Kim's eyes. Jeff screams in anger and leaves the room. Kim embraces her sleeping son and then looks at Cody.

"We should tell you what happened."

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	3. A History Revealed

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Kim brings Cody out to the living room, "I know Mik would hate it if I told you about his past with the Eisen Jäger. He was part of the gang known as the Eisen Jäger. It's main base of operations was in Dresden, where we lived. He was brought in when he was just 7. He was raised as a gang member and his fighting potential was quickly realized by Detlef Brandt, the leader of the gang at the time. The Brandt family was very dangerous and had lead the Eisen Jäger since its creation in the mid 1960's. Mikhail was pulled into the lifestyle of gangs and witnessed many horrible things. Detlef was perhaps the most violent of many of the Brandt leaders and was feared by many of the citizens of Dresden. Mikhail was trained by Detlef himself in hand to hand combat and taught Mikhail many different things that had to do with gang life. Such as drugs. Detlef was the one who introduced cocaine to him. It was horrible.

Cody couldn't believe what he was hearing. Mikhail had been in a gang and abused drugs. Kim went on, "Mik was eventually given a singular name, like all those who became accepted by the hierarchy of the gang. He was called Sankt (saint) and became one of the highest ranking 13 year olds of all time in the gang. Most people didn't reach the rank of Allgemein (General) at all and when some did, they were usually around 17 or 18. Mikhail was known for his fierceness and devotion to the gang and his ability for persuasion and ability to get things done was heard throughout the streets of Dresden."

"Just how do you know all of this?" asks Cody.

"Since the Eisen Jäger was how I met Jeff. We changed our names when we moved to America. Jeff's real name was Dietmar. My name was Ilsa. We were both members of the gang in the early 80's until a few years after Mik was born. We met and fell in love immediately. Jeff's grandmother found out about him in the gang and kicked him out of the house. When I gave birth to Mik, I was young and not ready to take care of him and Jeff's grandmother took Mikhail in. When Mikhail was about 6, I took him back and tried to keep him out of the gang, but Detlef got a hold of him one day and warped his mind. When Jeff's Grandmother, Ziska, found out about Mikhail's cocaine problem, she could stand back no longer and actually hired a few men to bring him to her house and she chained him to a wall in order that he couldn't escape. She fed him but he would often times not eat."

"When I saw him when he was in withdrawal, I nearly died of sadness. He looked so weak and horrible. He was covered in puke, shaking all the time, and mumbling nonsense. I tried to get him unlocked but Ziska refused and physically prevented me from releasing him. In 5 months, he was out of the severe withdrawal and she finally released him. Mikhail had finally decided to leave the gang but many didn't want Sankt to leave. Detlef really didn't want to give up his best student. Then Detlef was found dead in his apartment and Hiltraud, Detlef's youngest brother, took over. That was when we decided to move. We changed our names, but Mikhail refused to change his name. We took Justin with us, whose real name is Markus, since his parents were deeply involved in the gang and Mik wanted him to not be taken in like he was. And that is how we ended up here."

Cody couldn't believe everything that he had just heard. He had known so little about Mikhail's past and it was pretty much completely revealed to him just now. Kim walked over to a bookshelf, removed a photo album, and walked over with it. She opened it and turned to the back page. She removed photos which were hidden behind some other photos and she showed them to him. One picture was of Mikhail. He was young, he had his usual short black hair, and his eyes looked half dead. He was wearing black khakis and a black t-shirt. There was a holster on his shoulder, holding a pistol and there was a hunting knife by his side.

"This was him when he was 12. He was highly respected by many of the people in the gang and feared by many of the smaller gangs." She then shows Cody a picture of a young woman, of about 16 and a man of about the same age. She had long blond hair and the man had shoulder length black hair, "Me and Jeff, I was pregnant and didn't even know it yet." She pulls out another picture and there was a picture of Mikhail and another boy of about 19, "That's Detlef." Detlef had short blond hair and was wearing a suit and tie. His hair was slicked back and he had a hand on Mikhail's shoulder. Kim pulled out one final picture and it was one that would stick in Cody's memory forever. It was a picture of Mikhail chained to a wall, window right over his head. There was puke all over his white wife beater and navy khakis. The outline of his body was slightly blurry, revealing movement, and his eyes were surrounded by dark circles and the eyes were rolled into the back of his head. Kim exhaled.

"It was taken by a doctor. There were no real rehab places in the area and the doctor that, although crude, this was the best way to get him better. He was 13 at the time. 2 months later he got better and in 6 months we moved." Cody puts the pictures down and Kim falls back against the couch.

"Well…now you know."

"It just seems so unreal. He seems like such an innocent kid. But it does seem to explain his ability to turn into a crazed fighter." Kim slowly nods.

"And I know why you wonder how he could be called Mikhail with parents called Jeff and Kim." Cody slowly nods, "But look, Cody. If anyone knows the horror of being in a gang, its Mik. He is the most important thing in my life and I would do anything to protect him. I know that you feel the same way about your brother. I know that Mik can help. We'll get him out of this."

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	4. Zack's Mission

(Don't worry, all of Mikhail's crap is out of the way. Warning drug abuse.)

Zack looks out of the muggy window and watches the ocean as the reefer hit him and he let the feeling roll over him. The room slowly starts to fade in and out as he takes a swig of beer and he can barely see the rest of the people in the room laughing and drinking. He sees his pal Freddie sit next to him and clap him on the shoulder.

"Yo man. We're gonna hit a few places tonight, you in?" Zack slowly nods and takes another hit from the bowl. Freddie laughs and gets up. Zack decides to get up to check things out front. He stumbles down to the stairs and heads to the door, where the sunlight brightly covers his face, forcing him to squint. Then he sees Tyler walk up and he stands up straight. Tyler looks down at Zack.

"You really proved yourself by beating the shit outta that kid who tried to 'save you'," Zack laughs.

"Thanks."

"That's why I'm going to give you the opportunity to prove yourself." Zack thanks Tyler over and over at the opportunity, "You gotta kidnap this kid," he gives Zack a photo. Zack recognizes it as Justin. He nods.

"Alright. When do I do it?"

"Right now. Sean and Kelly found his whereabouts. He usually plays in the park near the woods…especially at night. And when the darkness is coming in, there will be no distractions."

Zack and Freddie approach the park by the time the sun had already set and as they approach the wooded area they could hear giggling and rustling. Zack squints through the darkness and sees that familiar white-blond hair head. Zack walks over and Justin finally sees him.

"HEY ZACK! Where have you been?" Zack doesn't even hesitate. He pats Justin in the shoulder and quickly turns it into a strangle hold. The little 12 year old lets out horrible choking noises as he gags for breath. Zack throws Justin and when Justin turns to face him, he hurls a huge punch into the boy's jaw, knocking him flat out. Justin falls to the ground like a rock and Zack hurls the small child over his shoulder as they head back to the hangout.

When Zack and Freddie arrive back at the base, a few of the members see the small kid around his shoulder. A few of the older ones were known for pedophiliac like activity. He brings Justin's unconscious form into the building and Tyler walks over to see if Zack really did it. He lifts Justin's face in order to see it and see that it was Justin.

"Very good, Zack. You got him all by yourself?" Freddie says that he did. Tyler nods and looks at Zack, "Good things are coming your way." Zack just had to ask.

"Why am I being rewarded for kidnapping a 12 year old, especially as small and skinny as this one."

"You have no idea how well this will propel you to Soldier or even Enforcer rank. We have some plans for this kid. And if I guessed correctly, your REAL promotion mission will be put in place."

"What will that be?"

"Killing Mikhail Shoelpkof." Zack was hit by surprise.

"You want me to KILL someone?"

"Yea, it's not too hard. You already beat the shit out of him. Might as well kill him." Zack nods and suddenly feels Justin's weight pulled off his body. He looks over to see one of the pedophiliac members looking and Justin in a very strange way. Tyler quickly grabs Justin's form out of his hands.

"We need this kid intact as of right now. But when all is said and done, you can do what you want with the brat. I won't care."

(At the Tipton)

Cody walks through the hall and catches sight of Arwin. He rushes over, "Have you seen Justin lately. He was supposed to come with my mom and I to dinner. Arwin can only say he hasn't and heads back to work. Cody groans in effort as he had searched everywhere for Justin but found no sign of him. Cody walks outside to head to the park to look for him there. Cody is just about to enter the park when two kids appear out of nowhere and forcefully lead Cody to an unknown location.

"Don't fucking make a sound and come with us." Cody could do nothing but comply and is lead to an abandoned warehouse. In the warehouse, Cody sees Zack and Tyler, along with a few other members. Cody is thrown in front of Tyler and Zack. Tyler looks down at the quivering Cody.

"We want YOU to deliver a message to Mikhail Shoelpkof." Cody sees the group of members part and reveal an unconscious Justin tied to a chair. Cody looks in horror and tries to get to him but the crowd goes back in front of Justin, forming a wall to stop him. Cody looks over to his brother.

"Who did this?" Cody asks.

"Guess who," says Zack.

"Zack, you MUST know that you made a huge mistake doing that. Mik isn't gonn…"

"Mikhail can kiss my ass. All he did when we were younger was tower over us as the power that we all depended on. All he seems to do is get us in more trouble with his temper. Yea, he has a shitload of pain tolerance which would make The Undertaker proud, but there are strength in numbers. His time in my life is done. I don't need someone like him to boss me around when I have all these friends to help protect me if that psycho comes for me."

"What are you talking about, he helped you out in so man…"

"NO! YOU don't know what your talking about. HE was the one who is all fucked. I was told about his past, thanks to Tyler here. I was also told how he killed 7 people out of pleasure." Cody was shocked, "Yea, you didn't think the 'All Powerful' Mikhail could hurt anything but evil. Well you're wrong. Yea, he's got balls we give him that much. But I can't wait to teach him a lesson." Cody was on the verge of crying as two members grab him and Tyler shouts the message as he is getting dragged out of the warehouse.

"Tell Mikhail to come here alone, if he doesn't then Justin will be fed to the Vypers."

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	5. Mikhail Out of Action

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Cody approaches the door to the Shoelpkof apartment with fear filling his gut. He enters and Kim sees him. She was crying, "We can't find Justin! Where is he?" Cody knew that he would have to tell them but he knew that he had to tell Mikhail first.

"I don't know, Kim. I'm sorry," Kim goes back to the couch and cries as Cody enters Mikhail's bedroom. Cody sees Mikhail looking out the window to the rain that had slowly started to fall from the black clouds in the night sky, "Mik, Justin's been kidnapped," Mikhail slowly nodded "They want you to come to a warehouse alone. I don't know why."

"I know that they want to kick me into the dirt. If it gets Justin out than I will do whatever they want from me or want to do to me." Cody sees Mikhail leave the room and out of the apartment. Cody wanted to follow but there was nothing that could be done to stop him.

(At the warehouse)

Zack sits in front of Justin, who had just woken up and the two were just staring at each other. Justin's eyes showed severe hatred and Zack laughed at the attempted threat, "You aren't in the situation to appear tough, Justin." Blood was speckled all over Justin's face and had gotten into his blond hair, turning it a strange blond-red fusion color. Zack gets up and suddenly hears a commotion in the main area of the warehouse. Zack looks out and sees Mikhail slowly limp in. Zack laughs, "Your cousin's here." Zack leaves the room and heads out the area, where Mikhail had been completely surrounded by the many members. Members make way for Zack to get through. Mikhail looked at Zack. Zack could see tears in Mikhail's eyes.

"W-why Zack?" Zack looks at Mikhail, who fell to his knees, "Just let him go. He's done nothing to any of you." Zack looks down at Mikhail.

"How pathetic. You really were an idol to me once, now I see your nothing but a wimp." Mikhail looks up at Zack and then looks down at the ground. Mikhail leaps into the air and slams into Zack, sending both to the ground. The group of kids surrounding them are about to destroy Mikhail when Tyler stops them.

"This is your full initiation into our group, Tank. Beat Sankt in hand to hand combat. If you can do that, then you are immediately promoted to enforcer." Zack smiles at the opportunity and gets in the middle of the circle of gang members, most drunk or high who were screaming for him to kill Mikhail. Mikhail looks at Zack and Zack looks right back. Zack dodges a fierce punch by Mikhail and kicks him right in the stomach. Mikhail groans and falls on all fours from the impact. Zack kicks Mikhail in the knee, his bad knee, and Mikhail screams in pain. Zack puts Mikhail into a sleeper hold and Mikhail starts to choke. However, Mikhail somehow lifts Zack up and throws him to the ground. Mikhail throws some kicks to Zack's stomach with his good leg and Zack groans from the hits. Mikhail picks Zack up and headbutts him, sending both boys to the ground in pain. Zack manages to get up first and kicks Mikhail right in the face, breaking his nose and causing blood to flow out from his nose. Mikhail falls onto his back and Zack starts to kick Mikhail in the stomach over and over.

"HAD ENOUGH, MIK?!" screams Zack. Mikhail grabs Zack by the collar and tries to throw a weak punch but Zack easily pulls away. Mikhail slowly tries to get to his feet and weakly swings his arm and it softly hits Zack's side, and has no effect at all. Tyler hands Zack a 2x4 and nods at him. Zack looks down at Mikhail who was kneeling at Zack's feet, almost as if awaiting his execution. Zack rears his hands back, and breaks the 2x4 across Mikhail's face. A loud CRACK is heard as Mikhail collapses to the ground and is motionless. Tyler looks at the beaten Mikhail and laughs.

"Wow, Tank, you really do know how to throw down a beating. Your officially my enforcer. You take orders only from me," as everyone congratulates Zack, Tyler looks down at the motionless Mikhail, "Why were you holding back, Sankt?" Tyler whispers to himself, "You could have crushed him easily. Have you really become that soft?" He sees Mikhail slowly move and slowly manages to turn himself onto his back. Out of his mouth falls three teeth, including one of his front teeth and he looks up at Tyler. Tyler grins and walks into the room with Justin. Zack watches as Tyler drags a screaming Justin out of the room and he throws the kid to the fallen Mikhail.

"Take him, Sankt. There's no real need to kill you, considering how soft you really are." Justin looks at his cousin and yells in fright. He tries to get Mikhail back to that dimension, since Mikhail was completely out of it, and the group laughs at Justin's helpless cries. Mikhail slowly is lifted to a sitting position thanks to Justin and Mikhail looks over at Zack and his eyes were dead looking he slowly starts to crawl towards Zack but Tyler gives the signal and the entire group of kids start to kick Mikhail as hard as they can. Justin rushes out of the room to get help, thanks to the fact that all the other members were too busy kicking Mikhail to watch after him.

Zack looks in pleasure as his past was seemingly destroyed right before his eyes by his bright future. Zack tells the whole group to back off and he lifts Mikhail's face right up to his own. Mikhail's eyes were only half open, his mouth was open with blood slowly oozing out, and he looked like he was staring out at some faraway place. He lifts Mikhail up, but Mikhail couldn't even work his own legs and Zack looks into Mikhail's glazed eyes.

"I respected you once, and when I was happy, you tried to stop it. You brought this upon yourself." Zack drops Mikhail onto the ground and he heads back with his buddies, but he suddenly feels something grab his leg. He looks down and sees Mikhail had barely grabbed the leg of Zack's baggy pants. He looks at Zack with eyes filled with tears and Zack pulls his leg away but Mikhail doesn't let go. Mikhail's eyes were red from the tears and he still was gazing into the distance. Zack tries to pull away again but Mikhail still doesn't let go. Zack sends his other foot right into Mikhail's face and Mikhail finally releases the pant leg and slams back to the ground, near unconscious. After a few minutes of watching the old legend of the Eisen Jäger lie on the ground, defeated, they heard sirens and they all rushed out of the warehouse. A minute later, paramedics and cops burst into the warehouse and find Mikhail. They rush him to the hospital.

Cody enters the hospital room and finds Mikhail hooked up to a ventilator and had multiple IV's in him. He suffered severe internal injuries and a cracked skull. Immediate surgery was needed and he was saved, but barely. Cody and his mom sit in the waiting room with the Shoelpkofs as they await the final news from the doctor. The doctor enters and everyone stands up.

"We managed to stop the internal bleeding and repair his skull. However, he is going to be wheelchair bound for a short while for fear of further strain on the spinal cord. If he applies too much pressure, he could permanently injure his spine, paralyzing him." Kim cries into Jeff's shoulder and Carey shakes her head. Cody felt tears fill his eyes but he was suddenly overcome with rage. Zack went over the line this time. Cody bursts from the room and rushes outside. He starts to punch the brick wall until his knuckles bleed and he looks at them.

"Time to bring you home, Zack"

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	6. Cody's Had Enough

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Cody leaves the hotel and sees members of the Emerald Vypers and scowls to himself. He couldn't wait to ruin them. He had known of the Vypers rivalry with the Eclipse Gang and that they would do whatever it took to win a rumble. Cody heads to the rougher part of town and finds the symbol for the Eclipse gang starting to show up everywhere. He sees a few members and tries to find one that looks of higher authority.

"Excuse me…I would like to higher your muscle." Cody is greeted with stern looks and laughs. The tallest one walks over.

"Why should we help you out?"

"I know the location of several hideouts of the Emerald Vypers and their main hangout." This immediately perks the interest of the tall kid and he pats Cody on the shoulder. Cody looks at him.

"There is a stipulation though. I have a twin that I want to get out of the gang and back home. He is my twin, we don't look alike but you will be able to tell who it is. My payment will your victories over them." The tall Eclipse member slowly nods and motions to the other kids.

"We gotta tell Vinny this," the tall kid looks back at Cody, "You got a deal, kid. That IS if your telling the truth."

"I think you'll find my information quite accurate."

(Back at the hotel)

Cody walks through the lobby with a wheelchair bound Mikhail. He was slowly pushing Mikhail around, even though Mikhail said he could push it. It was then that Cody had an insane idea, "Would you be able to train me, Mik?" Mikhail looks up at him like he was crazy.

"You're nuts, Cody. It takes more than a few days to become a great fighter."

"I don't need to become a great fighter, I just need to learn the basics and that is all it will take to outmatch one of those stoners." Mikhail looks at him and just shakes his head.

"Forget it."

"Don't you want to help him…if you can help train me, then I can help get him back instead of watching you or someone else do it. It should be me bringing him back." Mikhail lets out a deep breath.

"Alright…when do you want to start?"

"Right now," Cody says excitedly. Mikhail just nods and motions Cody to take him up to the hotel suite. When they get up there, Mikhail turns the wheelchair around so he is looking at Cody.

"Hold out your arm."

"Wha…"

"Just do it." Cody extends his arm and suddenly feels Mikhail's knuckles dig into his arm. Cody yelps in pain and rubs the sore spot. Mikhail just shakes his head.

"Alright, now punch my hand." Mikhail extends his hand and opens it, revealing his palm. Cody punches the palm and Mikhail's chair doesn't even slide back. Mikhail shakes his head again. Mikhail puts Cody through a number of simple drills for what reason Cody had no idea. Cody did some kicks, stretched, and 100 jumping jacks among other things. Mikhail was slowly nodding his head and it seemed like he was thinking. Mikhail then grabbed a strange piece of wood from his room and wheeled back out.

"Punch this wood as hard as you can and as long as you can." Cody managed three hits until he had to stop. His knuckles were red and throbbing in pain. Mikhail slowly nodded.

"Alright, Cody. These exercises were done in Dresden to find one's strengths and weaknesses. You are obviously not a pain addict so we need to develop you. This is an oak board and you shall use it for hand conditioning and shin conditioning. If you're going to become a fighter, then you will need to be able to develop your fists and legs for fighting. I also want you to start running. You will need to eat very healthy but since you are very skinny that won't be too much of a problem. Protein is going to be your main source of power so we will need to increase that in your diet."

"Sounds like a lot to do without throwing a single punch."

"Trust me, Cody. If there is one thing I know, it's fighting. This is how I was trained and this is how I will train you."

Over the next few weeks, Cody starts to become stronger and more durable in a scrap. Mikhail was allowed out of the wheelchair and was slowly starting to get back to full health once more. Mikhail did reaction drills and conditioning exercises to make Cody tougher. At first, Cody could only go a few minutes and then start to break down but Mikhail would yell at him to get back up and prove himself. Mikhail knew that there was hidden anger in Cody that could be very devastating and it was only a matter of time until Cody snapped and reached the point where Mikhail would become obsolete. Mikhail would do punching drills with Cody and Cody would become faster with blocks. This was Mikhail's fighting style, block the attack then find an opening. It will end most fights immediately with an untrained fighter. Cody not only trained physically but went beyond and started to learn the nerves of the body, mainly in the shoulder. Weeks turn into a month and soon Cody is tougher than his old self by about 20 fold. Mikhail was back to his full health and Cody could block most any attack thrown at him. Mikhail smiles after a few punching exercises and conditioning drills. Cody had improved greatly and it was now time to start the attack on the Emerald Vypers.

The next day, there was news of the Eclipse Gang attacking a Vyper stash house, stuffed with booze and drugs. Cody was told that there was no sign of Zack. Cody knew that he needed to test himself before going right to the main hideout. He heads out with a few of the Eclipse gang and they raid an outpost.

Cody is watching the door as the members behind him raid the stashes. Suddenly a Vyper pops out from a closet and attacks Cody. Cody simply blocks the punch, sweeps the attacker's leg from beneath him, and lands a compressed thumb strike to the kid's throat. The kid moans in pain and rolls on the floor. The members of the Eclipse gang look impressed and slap him on the back as means of respect.

"Alright, I think we're done here."

"Good, since tomorrow I think we should attack one of the main spots."

"Where is it, Dollface?"

"At the docks. I remember seeing Zack always going there, saying it was like home to him. That is where he will most likely be. The Eclipse members all hoot in celebration and quickly run out of the building before the cops arrived.

(Sorry for the long wait, was busy.)


	7. The Battle for Survival

(Please Review)

Cody and the group looks up at the warehouse on the docks and grin. They are armed with weapons and determination. The warehouse is raided and it is a bloody ordeal. Faces break and blood flies everywhere as the two gangs bash it out but neither seems to overcome the other. Cody is in the midst of the combat when he sees the face of his brother. He had dyed his hair black and loose skin sagged on his face, revealing he had lost a lot of weight…fast. Cody rushes to his and tackles him. Zack looks up at him and hurls his brother off of him. Zack rushes out of the door and Cody follows. Once outside, the twins stop in their tracks and look at each other. It was then that Cody got a true look at Zack for the first time in a while. Zack was so skinny and weak looking. Cody shook his head.

"You look like crap, Zack."

"IT'S TANK FUCKHEAD!" Zack charges and throws clumsy punches, which Cody blocks but hesitates with striking back. He couldn't find the heart to hit his own brother to the extreme he was taught. Zack keeps on his terribly placed assault and Cody keeps blocking with ease. It was then that Zack pulls out a knife and swings at Cody with it. Cody grabs the hand and presses a nerve in the wrist, numbing the hand and the fingers become lifeless and the knife falls out of his fingers. Cody looks at his brother, who was only a few inches from his face. The two look at each other after the deadly attack. Suddenly, Cody feels a kick to his midsection and falls to the ground. He sees Tyler standing next to Zack and laughing. He grabs Cody by the throat and lifts him right into the air and squeezes. Cody feels the life being squeezed from his body when Tyler yelps in pain and drops Cody. Cody looks and sees Mikhail and Justin. Justin had a cleaver in his hand and had sent it into Tyler's calf. Tyler pulls the knife from his calf and looks at Mikhail and Justin. He then looks back at Justin.

"I was told that you were still a bit tough, Markus (Justin)." Mikhail throws a bat to Justin and Justin hurls it at Tyler. The bat spins almost artistically and the tip smashes into Tyler's face, breaking the nose and sending Tyler collapsing to the ground. Zack and Cody look in shock at Justin. A younger member of the Vypers sees the event and charges Justin. Justin blocks a punch and headbutts the kid right off his feet. Zack takes this time to rush back into the building while everyone watched Justin defend himself. Cody looks back and sees Zack is gone. Tyler slowly gets to his feet, blood flowing from his nose like a faucet and Mikhail kicks him right off his feet. Mikhail grabs Tyler by the throat and looks at him with a piercing stare. Tyler just starts to laugh.

"What's so funny?"

"Wait till Faust (fist) gets here. You'll be sorry." Cody sees Mikhail's stare go wide and he starts to shake the laughing Tyler.

"FAUST IS COMING HERE?!"

"He was here an hour ago. Left for some reason. He's hunting you all down, Sankt." Mikhail lets go and slowly backs up as Tyler gets to his feet, laughing, "That's right. We have Faust on our side." Mikhail falls onto his butt and just looks at the cement floor in shock. Cody had no idea what was going on but Tyler rushes away from the attack with a couple of the other ranking members of the gang. They were retreating to the main base. Zack was among them. Cody could do nothing to stop them. The base was won, which was great for the Eclipse Gang but it wasn't enough for Cody. He needed to get his brother back. If he could only show that they didn't truly care for him. Cody watches the Eclipse members celebrate and walks over to Mikhail, who still seemed to be in shock.

"F-Faust…h-h-how," Cody can hear Mikhail muttering to himself.

"Who's Faust, Mikhail?"

"My partner when I was in the Eisen Jäger. He is Detlef's son. His real name is Eckhart." Cody knew this was just adding more problems and they would all need to be at their best to stop the Emerald Vypers and get Zack back.

Zack looks at the battered Vypers and then to Tyler. Tyler was still bleeding badly and was still dazed. Tyler was ranting on about how 'Faust' was gonna make the Eclipse Gang pay. Zack had only heard about Faust and was told that he was the unofficial founder of the gang, though all credit was given to Tyler. Faust was rumored to be undefeated in hand to hand combat and a member of the Brandt family, though no one but Tyler seemed to understand what that meant.

"When is this Faust supposed to get here?"

"He is already here, and he is staying at the main base." Zack and the battered Vypers follow Tyler to the main Base of Operations in the park. The group enters the woods in the back of the park and head down the paths as the sky grew darker. A mile or so into the woods, an old house emerges from the shadows and is filled with light. This was Zack's first time at the main base and it was only where the higher members went. The small soldiers were sent home before they had entered the park. Zack was allowed in and lead to the basement. In the basement was a party and Zack was lead through the party till he was lead to a room in the back which was guarded by two enforcers, the third highest rank the group offered. Tyler leads Zack into the room and in the room sits a boy of about 18. He has a girl delivering a lap dance and seems a bit distracted. Tyler clears his throat and the boy looks at Tyler. He moans, annoyed, and tells the girl to hit the road. The girl leaves, pouting, and the door is shut behind them.

"What is it, Tyler?"

"Faust, this is Tank. The one we said knows Sankt." Faust immediately takes interest and sits up in his seat. He motions Zack to sit down in a chair next to him and Zack complies.

"So you know Sankt, eh?" Zack just nods, "Is he still the little peace loving shit that I saw leave Germany?" Zack nods once more, causing Faust to groan in hatred, "That little shit. I should have killed him when I had the chance."

"You knew Mik…I mean Sankt?"

"Yes, he was my partner when were with the Eisen Jäger. He was a tough SOB then. He was taking on people Tyler's age, and winning. Soon, he won most fights without throwing a single punch. He intimidated so many over there that many chose to not even try to fight him."

"Really?"

"Yes. Much of his strength came from his drug abuse. He took steroids as well as the coke. He also had my father's training. My father was much older than most believed. He was believed to be about 19 but was actually about 25. I don't know for sure. Soon, Sankt left the life we had given him to become 'clean'. He was instrumental in the decline of the Eisen Jäger."

"How?"

"He killed my father. He killed Detlef Brandt," Zack couldn't believe what he had heard; "He killed my father in his sleep. Shot him right in the head. Little did he know that Detlef's last order was to create an arm of the Eisen Jäger in America. That arm has become the Emerald Vypers. I was sent here and found the original Generals. We created this gang and one of my missions is to use my father's last order to destroy his killer." Zack took in what he was hearing in shock.

"What do you want us to do about him, sir?" Faust looks at Zack but suddenly hears a commotion upstairs. Faust gets up and opens the door. He sees the party had stopped and everyone was rushing upstairs. Faust whispers something into Tyler's ear and then Tyler rushes upstairs. Faust shuts the door and sits back down. Zack tries to figure out what is going on.

"What's happening?"

"An attack. Somehow the Eclipse found out where the hideout is. Tyler's going to see if Sankt is among them." Suddenly, Tyler slams the door open and shuts it.

"Yes sir, he's up there." Faust gets to his feet and heads out the door, which Tyler quickly opens for him. Zack follows and they head up the stairs. The three of them enter the living room and head up to the second floor, to observe the battlefield. Faust scans over the battle outside and sees Mikhail standing in the back, away from the fight. He sees Justin there as well.

"So he brought Markus with him as well. Faust heads downstairs and Tyler and Zack follow. Faust exits the house and all of the fighting stops. Even the members of the Eclipse gang knew Faust. Faust looks into the crowd.

"SANKT! SHOW YOURSELF!" The crowd parts and reveals Mikhail.

Cody knew that the plan had been sent in motion and the enemy had taken the bait. Cody and the group that he had hide themselves amongst the shadows of the tree and slowly move towards the flank. Cody knew it would be easier to grab Zack if everyone was focused on the confrontation of the two German rivals. Cody slowly heads to the back of the Vyper lines and sees Zack with Tyler. Cody takes a quick moment to stop and look at the two German rivals. Faust and Mikhail walk closer and closer till they are just inches apart. Faust was slightly taller than Mikhail and Mikhail looked up at his former partner. Faust smiles at Mikhail.

"You killed my father, Sankt. I think you should know that the Emerald Vypers were my father's last order before you killed him in his sleep, like a coward." Mikhail let off a smile.

"Happy to do so." Faust grits his teeth in anger and goes for a punch. Mikhail blocks it but Faust shows incredible strength and uses his trapped arm to hurl Mikhail right off his feet and slam to the ground with that one arm. Faust goes for a stomp but Mikhail rolls out of the way and slams both palms into Faust's chest. Faust stumbles back but grins at Mikhail when he stops. Mikhail raises his arms and so does Faust. Both boys hurl punches at the other but the other blocks and counters, only to be blocked. These exchanges continue for several minutes and neither seems to have the edge. Faust then grabs Mikhail around the face, in a claw like manner and hurls Mikhail right off his feet. Mikhail rolls to his feet and takes a strange stance. Suddenly out of the crowd emerges Justin and he throws his bat to Mikhail. Mikhail catches it and swings wildly at Faust, who dodges each strike. Faust then grabs a hit attempt and slams the end of the handle of the bat into Mikhail's chest. Mikhail falls to one knee, trying to catch his breath and Faust raises the bat over his head to finish Mikhail off. Mikhail raises a hand and catches the downward strike and lands a hard strike to Faust's stomach. Faust grunts in pain and falls to one knee as well. Mikhail grabs Faust around the throat but Faust does the same and each struggles for breath and the strength to overcome the other. Faust uses his other arm to grab onto Mikhail's other arm and uses his leg strength to hurl Mikhail in a monkey flip. Mikhail lands hard on his back and Faust gets to his feet. Mikhail gets up, slower this time, but his fist suddenly flashes forward and smashes into Faust's face. Faust covers his nose in pain and curses in pain. Mikhail gets to his feet and lands a hard kick to Faust's balls, sending Faust right to the ground. Mikhail then suddenly pulls out a pistol from his shorts and beneath his shirt. He points it at the downed Faust and smiles.

"Like father like son, eh Faust," Faust tries to scurry away but Mikhail clicks the hammer and the sound stops Faust in his tracks. Mikhail slowly walks over and stands right next to the terrified Faust. Mikhail then smiles and pulls the trigger. A loud BANG echoes through the woods and a flash of light emerges from the gun. Faust's eyes are closed and he is shaking all over. He slowly opens his eyes and sees that the gun had a flag sticking out of it. It was a toy. Mikhail smiles and sniffs the air, "Have an accident, Faust?" Faust had pissed himself out of fear. Mikhail drops the gun and heads to the back of the group of Eclipse members. Faust screams in anger and tries to charge after Mikhail. The battle resumes before Faust can get to Mikhail.

Cody runs up amidst the chaos and grabs Zack. Zack looks at his brother and retaliates with a fierce punch to Cody's nose. A few other Eclipse members try to subdue Zack but Tyler quickly interferes. The surprise was all for naught. The Eclipse members are slowly pushed back and soon are forced to retreat. Faust searches wildly for the one who embarrassed him in front of his own soldiers but Mikhail and Justin are long gone. When the Eclipse members are pushed back, Faust storms into the house and immediately starts smashing things. Everyone stays out of his way.

"WE'RE GONNA GET HIM! I SWEAR WE WILL KILL HIM!" Zack could do nothing but hear his boss rant and rant for an hour or so. When Faust finally calms down, he looks at Zack.

"YOU! You know where Mikhail stays. I want that fucker's head on a spit."

"I'll find him, boss."

(Please review.)


	8. Zack gets Mikhail

(Please Review)

Zack stands across the street from the Tipton. He had been given his mission and it was quite simple, 'Get Mikhail to Faust alive'. Everyone knew this was easier said than done. He turns to the two members with him and they were smoking a joint while waiting.

"Hey, Tank. You knew this Sankt, what's he like?"

"He's soft, Tony. He's tough but soft. He can never deliver the final blow."

"That's not what I heard, dude. I heard he shot and knifed people in the clear of day. He was like a little Jason Voorhees."

"Well he ain't like that anymore. Give me a hit of that." Tony passes the joint and Zack takes a hit. The three look up and see Mikhail leave and go on his morning run. They quickly grab their stuff and follow from a distance. Mikhail ran to the edge of the city and ran along the water, where it was quieter. Zack and the two others keep up with relative ease since Mikhail was never much of a fast runner. Mikhail soon takes a break near the docks and looks out at the sunrise. Zack and the two others slowly move closer and closer. Finally they are less than a few feet from Mikhail.

"Don't think I don't hear you three." Mikhail turns around, sweat covering his face and running clothes, "I've known you were behind me for the last half mile."

"Then why didn't you run away?"

"I wanted to but a part of me told me to face the music."

"Faust said that you killed his father…"

"I did indeed." All three kids are taken aback by the instant answer.

"You really did?"

"Gunshot to the head. Detlef was asleep and wouldn't let me move on so I killed him to protect me and my family," Mikhail grins at their shocked faces, "You didn't think I was capable of such merciless actions, did you Zack?"

"IT'S TAN…" but before Zack can finish, Mikhail smacks him right across the face.

"No nickname can fully remove your real name from your memory. I dropped the name Sankt years ago. I tried to forget but it seems that some people don't want me to."

"Enough fucking talk. Are you gonna come with us or are we gonna have to beat you down first?" Mikhail looks at them.

"I want one condition. Justin is left alone." Tony just shrugs.

"Fine." Mikhail is escorted out of the docks and lead to the main base.

(In the main base)

Zack enters the main base with the defenseless Mikhail next to him. The other members looked in awe at the 17 year old prodigy. Some kids were amazed that he was actually 17 since he was only about 5'7 but his face looked old. Mikhail waits in the living room of the house as the entire gang at the house looks at him with him in the middle of the circle they surrounded him with. Faust enters the room and sees Mikhail standing in the room.

"You came without a struggle, just like old times eh Sankt."

"I despised those times, Eckhart." Eckhart reacted almost like he had never heard that name before.

"Eckhart, you still refer to me as that. You never thought Faust was a good nickname." Mikhail looks at his old partner and Eckhart looks to Zack, "Tank, I want you to prove your skills to me. You think you can handle Sankt?" Tyler walks up to Eckhart.

"He already tore that kid apart bef…"

"Sankt was taking it like a man but he wasn't fighting. He didn't even try to defend himself. Not anymore. Sankt, you fight for real or I send someone to find your little preteen love interest." Mikhail's eyes grow dark and Zack knew he was talking about Justin.

"You leave him outta this."

"Then fight…amuse me, Sankt." Mikhail looks at Zack for a few seconds and then raises his fists. Zack removes his shirt and pulls out a knife from his pants. Eckhart smiled at the instant urge for blood. Zack goes for a stab but Mikhail blocks it with one swift movement of his hand and catches the stabbing hand. Zack tries to pull away but the grip is far too tight and Zack can't get away. Mikhail looks at Zack.

"This is your last chance, Zack."

"FUCK YOU!" screams Zack and he shoves Mikhail. Mikhail uses his incredible arm strength to yank Zack's arm to the ground and send Zack's face smashing into the hardwood floor. Zack somehow manages to scramble away and Mikhail kicks the knife away. Zack raises his fists and Mikhail just looks at him. Zack throws a fierce punch which slams into Mikhail's face but Mikhail doesn't even waver. He looks at Zack and wipes blood from his mouth. Zack throws another punch and it lands again. Mikhail still doesn't move. He grabs Zack by the arm and delivers a fierce judo throw and hurls Zack over his shoulder and Zack slams to the ground and punches Zack in the stomach. Zack coughs as the wind is knocked out of him but he gets to his feet and fights through the pain. Zack starts to throw fierce punches and Mikhail is forced to block them and counters the attacks but Zack is in full adrenaline mode. Zack slams a fierce kick into Mikhail's stomach and Mikhail leans over in pain. Zack lifts Mikhail's face and slams the top of his head into Mikhail's face. Mikhail falls to the ground with blood pouring from his nose.

"I seem to be winning, Mik…" says Zack but he is instantly shut up when Mikhail gets right to his feet and looks at Zack without a hint of pain on his face. Mikhail grabs Zack by the throat and hurls him right off his feet and Zack slams into a couple of the watching members. Mikhail races towards Eckhart. Eckhart raises his hands and the two are about to exchange blows when a member of the gang rushes in.

"The Eclipse gang is coming for another assault. I think they plan to rescue him" This distracts Mikhail enough to turn but Eckhart knocks Mikhail out with a rock in his pocket, since he never planned to fight fairly with Mikhail since he knew he would lose.

(Outside of the house)

Cody, Justin, and the members of the Eclipse gang were ready to finish the Emerald Vypers once and for all. They brought all of their power and all of their men. It would be the fight to finish it all. Justin had followed Mikhail and saw him get taken. Justin rushed back and told Cody, who informed the Eclipse Gang. Cody looks at the house and takes a deep breath. This was the time to prove that Zack needed to come home.

(Please review.)


	9. Still Missing

(Please Review)

Zack looks outside the house and sees the large group of Eclipse members emerging from the woods. He knew that they were outnumbered and outmanned. The smart thing to do would be to retreat and think on how to get a counter attack going. He turns to Eckhart who was dragging the unconscious Mikhail to the back of the house and to the car. Zack orders the soldiers to charge out and they form a perimeter around the front of the house. The Eclipse members emerge from the woods with 2x4s and bats. Cody and the initial strike team charge forward and the two forces slam together and weapons start swinging. Cody smashes a boy in the face with his 2x4 and rushes into the house. There were a few guards but Cody eliminated them with his weapon. He rushes through the house and sees his brother helping Eckhart drag Mikhail's body out of the house. Cody looks at his brother in disgust.

"Stop it, Zack!" Zack looks at his brother and grins. Eckhart looks at Cody and smiles as well.

"Take Sankt to the car. I want to test out Sankt's student."

"Student?"

"I heard Sankt was training this punk." Cody quickly charges forward but Eckhart grabs an arm and hurls Cody off his feet and into a wall. Eckhart goes for a kick but Cody rolls away and hurls his weapon at Eckhart, who swats it away with a firm forearm strike. Cody lands a swift kick to Eckhart's chest and Eckhart stumbles back. Cody goes for another fierce kick but Eckhart catches it and slams a fist into Cody's face and Cody falls to the ground. Eckhart looks at Cody and shakes his head, "You are Sankt's 'prodigy?' How pathetic." Cody uses his leg strength to leap up and slam into Eckhart. Eckhart is caught off balance and stumbles back. Cody grabs Eckhart by the shirt and slams a few hard punches into Eckhart's face. Eckhart grabs Cody by the throat and hurls him back. Cody is shocked by Eckhart's instant power. Eckhart gets up and wipes a bit of blood from his mouth, "I didn't think you would challenge me like this." Eckhart leaps forward and slams an elbow into Cody's jaw and Cody falls to his knees. Eckhart grabs Cody's hair and slams the back of Cody's head into the hardwood floor. Cody's eyes glaze over from the impact and he loses all the strength he had. He sees Eckhart looking at him from above and Eckhart smiles, "Not good enough…come on Tank, let's go." He leaves the room as Cody just lies on the floor, concussion in full effect.

"Get out, Tank! Follow me!" Zack follows his boss to the car as the soldiers continue battle out front. Eckhart slams the door shut after throwing Mikhail into the trunk and drives off with Zack in shotgun.

After the long fight, the beaten Vypers retreated back to the woods and the Eclipse members celebrate the major victory. Cody stumbles to his feet and stumbles through the house looking for his brother and Mikhail. He sees a car speed off in a trail of dust. Cody staggers outside and tries to follow. A few Eclipse members see Cody chasing it and rush after it. Cody falls to his feet as his visions swims before his eyes. That last hit really took the life out of Cody and his fighting spirit.

Zack looks at Eckhart, who wasn't even breathing heavy after the short conflict. Zack didn't think Eckhart was that tough especially after seeing Mikhail embarrass him in front of the whole gang.

"Were you toying with Cody?"

"Of course. I have only resorted to fighting like that twice before and both times were with Sankt." As they head onto the street Zack began to get curious.

"Where will we go? That was our last hideout."

"No, we have one more. It's on the docks. None of the eclipse members know of it. It's an old abandoned two floor warehouse. We can keep Sankt there and I will have my revenge. Once Sankt is dead, we can start our counterattack." Zack nodded and let his head rest against the window. It was so hectic.

(Two days later)

The police are out searching for Mikhail and Zack Martin. Cody had the Eclipse gang looking for the few organized Vypers left and it was a huge search. Cody and Justin were always out looking for a possible area but there were no leads until two days after the attack on the Emerald Vypers main base. Cody and Justin were on their normal searches when a member of the Eclipse gang showed up.

"We found their spot, Cody. It right next to the docks. One of my boys saw the car there." Cody nods.

"Get your men to lure out the soldiers as I try to rescue Mikhail." The member nods and walks off. Cody looks at the short 14 year old Justin.

"This is gonna be very dangerous, you should stay out of it."

"No way, Cody. I ain't bailing out on him now." Cody knew how Justin would respond before even asking the question. Cody just nods his head and the two head to the battle ground.

(Please review.)


	10. The Final Battle

(Please Review)

Zack looks outside of the window of the old warehouse and sees the Eclipse members heading towards it. Zack knew that they were caught and it was hopeless. He rushes down the stairs and sees that the small remaining Vypers were pissing themselves with fear. Zack heads to the area where Eckhart was torturing Mikhail. He was shocking Mikhail with a bucket of water and electric cables. Mikhail shook wildly from the shocks and when Eckhart would pull away, Mikhail would twitch wildly before stopping. That was the one thing that terrified Zack. Mikhail never screamed. He didn't scream when the electroshock began and hadn't since then. Suddenly the front door of the warehouse slams open and the Eclipse members rush inside. Eckhart leaves the twitching Mikhail in the chair and looks out the window into the warehouse from the office they were in.

"Shit, how could they have found us?"

"We're screwed, Faust. We gotta give up," says Zack.

"If you give up you'll end up just like him," Eckhart points at the twitching Mikhail. Zack grabs his bat and opens the door to the office but suddenly the door is kicked into him and Zack falls to the ground. Cody walks into the office and looks at the twitching Mikhail. Cody rushes forward and lands a fierce dropkick to Eckhart and Eckhart slams to the ground. Another Eclipse member rushes into the room and grabs the near unconscious Mikhail. Cody kicks Eckhart but Eckhart screams in anger and slams right through Cody and chases the Eclipse member. Mikhail is dropped on the floor as Eckhart hurls the Eclipse member down the stairs. Mikhail slowly gets to his feet and Eckhart looks at his old partner.

"You always seem to have luck on your side. But not today," says Eckhart. Eckhart grabs Mikhail and goes to hurl him down the stairs with the Eclipse member. Mikhail slams down the stairs and hits the ground hard. Eckhart sees Mikhail slowly start to get back up and shakes his head in amazement, "Why are you so hard to kill?" Mikhail suddenly grabs Eckhart by the throat and hurls him down onto the floor from the stairs. Mikhail suddenly is kicked down by Zack. Cody was chasing his brother as Zack leaps down the stairs and slams into Mikhail. Mikhail loses balance and falls. A few Vypers raise their bats to finish the downed Mikhail but suddenly they are struck down by the young Justin. Cody punches out the last one and drags Mikhail to a deserted corner. He looks at Mikhail for wounds but Mikhail shoves him off. Mikhail gets to his feet and he his face suddenly seems much darker. Even his usual bright blue green eyes seem darker. He walks towards Eckhart and Eckhart sees him coming. Eckhart gets up and runs back up the stairs and into the office. Mikhail follows as Eckhart locks the door, which Mikhail kicks down. Eckhart looks at Mikhail as they face off for the last time.

Mikhail looks at Eckhart Brandt, his former partner, and he raises his fists to prepare for the fight ahead of him. Eckhart leaps forward and slams his fist right into Mikhail's cheek. Mikhail stumbles back as Eckhart slams two hard fists into his side and Mikhail leans over in pain and Eckhart knees Mikhail right in the face. This sends Mikhail spiraling back and crashing to the ground. Eckhart grabs Mikhail by the collar of his shirt and hurls Mikhail into a rotting wood table, which easily breaks on impact. Eckhart laughs and kicks Mikhail in the stomach. Mikhail grabs a piece of shattered wood from the table and breaks it over Eckhart's skull. This causes Eckhart to stumble back and lean against a wall for support. Mikhail slowly gets to his feet but Eckhart was back on the attack…and pissed off now. Eckhart grabs Mikhail's head and smashes it right through the weak wooden wall and Mikhail stumbles back and crashes to the ground. Mikhail looks at his old partner and stands up. Eckhart sneers and lands a fierce punch to Mikhail's jaw. However, Mikhail doesn't even flinch and looks back at Eckhart. Mikhail slams multiple punches into Eckhart's face and then lands a fierce right cross to Eckhart's jaw and Eckhart crashes to the ground.

"What's wrong, Faust? You can't keep ol' Sankt down." Eckhart groans in anger and pain from the impact and gets back to his feet. Mikhail throws more punches, which Eckhart blocks and counters, only for them to be blocked as well. Both boys throw kicks which are dodged and they look at each other. Eckhart looks at his old partner and grins.

"It seems that you aren't completely lost, Sankt." Mikhail slowly nods and goes for another kick, which Eckhart dodges and lands a kick of his own to Mikhail's stomach, which sends him to the ground.

(Down Below)

Cody looks at his brother and he could tell that Zack was just a shell of his former self. Zack's hair was dyed black and covered with a red bandanna. Zack wore black t-shirt and grey khakis. Zack looked half dead, his eyes bloodshot and he was very skinny, "Last chance, Zack. The Emerald Vypers are through and your so called 'family' left you to die. Can you really face Mikhail after he tried to save you?" Zack roars in anger and charges his brother. Cody dodges Zack's clumsy attack and uses Zack's own momentum to hurl him into a brittle wood wall. Zack crashes through it and lands on the ground of the other room. Cody sees Zack pick up a piece of wood from the wall and hurls it at him. Cody dodges and runs into the room. Cody kicks Zack right in the face and Zack falls onto his back. Zack grabs another kick and lifts the leg till Cody loses balance and falls onto his butt. Zack grabs Cody around the throat and starts to choke but Cody headbutts Zack and Zack stumbles back. Cody grabs a piece of wood and smashes it into Zack's shoulder. Zack screams in pain but doesn't back up. Zack grabs a stool and swings it at Cody, who blocks it with the wood in his hand and both twins struggle to overpower the other.

"You can't win, Cody" Zack says beneath gritted teeth. Cody lets out a strained laugh.

"It's YOU who's gonna lose." Cody screams in effort and hurls Zack right off his feet. Cody hurls the wood piece and stool to the ground and charges his brother. Both boys fall to the ground and they roll over the dusty floor, each throwing punches into the other's form.

(Back up above)

Mikhail and Eckhart look at each other in anger and Eckhart grins. Eckhart leaps forward and delivers a fierce dropkick to Mikhail's chest, sending Mikhail crashes backwards and his torso breaks a window, nearly sending him crashing out of it. Eckhart rushes over to toss Mikhail out but Mikhail kicks Eckhart away and leaps out of the way of the open window. Eckhart puts up his arms in a boxer's stance and slowly walks forward, keeping his guard up. Mikhail does the same and soon they are throwing fierce punches at each other but the other just blocks it and counters. Eckhart finally lands a fierce right hook and Mikhail stumbles back. Eckhart kicks Mikhail in the stomach, which causes him to bend over. Eckhart lifts Mikhail up and slams him to the ground. The impact causes Mikhail to crash right through the weak floor. Eckhart laughs but is soon silenced as Mikhail had grabbed Eckhart's pant leg at the last moment and Eckhart is pulled down along with him.

Zack and Cody see the ceiling implode and two forms crash down and slam to the floor. Mikhail lands on his stomach and Eckhart lands on his back. Cody punches Zack right across the face and Zack stumbles back. Eckhart looks up at Cody and mumbles something in German before getting up and slamming a punch of his own into Cody's jaw. Cody stumbles back but doesn't fall. Soon all four of them are back on their feet and looking at each other. Zack leaps forward and crashes into Mikhail, sending the two of them to the ground. Cody lands a punch of his own to Eckhart's jaw and Eckhart collapses to the ground. Cody mounts Eckhart and slams violent punches and elbows to Eckhart's face and torso. Eckhart hurls Cody off of him and gets up but feels Mikhail kick him in the back and he falls on top of Cody, who had extended his knee and Eckhart's stomach made contact with it. Eckhart completely loses his wind and coughs to regain it.

Zack shoves Mikhail right through another weak wall and the two of them burst to the outside of the building, falling on top of each other. Mikhail gets up and Zack blocks a kick and goes for a fierce punch to the throat, which Mikhail barely blocks and kicks Zack in the stomach. Zack grabs a piece of shattered wood and breaks it over the top of Mikhail's skull. Mikhail slams to the ground, clutching his newly repaired head and groans in pain. Zack laughs but suddenly feels a swift kick to his balls from Mikhail. Zack falls like a rock and groans in pain as well. Mikhail slowly gets to his feet, bleeding from the gash in his head, and looks at Zack get up as well. Mikhail slams a fierce spinning back kick right into Zack's gut and Zack is actually sent right off his feet and crashes to the ground. Mikhail sees Tyler appear out of nowhere and tackle him. Mikhail is lifted right into the air and hurled right onto the concrete ground. Mikhail groans in pain as Tyler picks him up and delivers a devastating left cross, sending Mikhail stumbling back and crashing to the ground. He looks over at Zack, who had recovered, and picks Mikhail up. Tyler then throws a switchblade to Zack.

"Kill him, Tank!" Zack looks at the knife and then at Mikhail. Mikhail looks at Zack and knew that his real decision had to be made in just a few seconds. He flips open the switchblade and walks towards his victim. Tyler holds Mikhail up and prepares for Zack to make his TRUE initiation. Tyler's smile is quickly replaced with a blank stare. Tyler releases Mikhail and slowly backs up as he looks down at the hilt protruding from his chest. Blood slowly oozes from his mouth and he falls onto his knees. He looks up at Zack, whose eyes seemed alive for the first time since he met the kid.

"I'm out, Tyler," Suddenly Zack kicks the hilt of the knife all the way through Tyler's chest and Tyler falls back, dead. Zack looks over to the bloody Mikhail, who was lying on the ground, groaning in pain, and he gives Mikhail a slight grin.

Cody and Eckhart are exchanging punches and kicks but neither can overpower the other Eckhart goes for a kick but Cody catches it between his arm and armpit and delivers a fierce punch to the stomach, sending Eckhart stumbling back. Eckhart looks at Cody, impressed. He then looks at the fallen Mikhail.

"So he taught you, didn't he?" Cody just nods, "Unusual, he never taught anyone before. But it's just like his style, only you are somehow superior to him. You are better at his style then he is. Probably less beat up than him." Eckhart gets into a strange stance and is light on his feet, " So lets see how well you do when I use the style I used to destroy him in Germany." Cody goes for multiple punches but Eckhart blocks each and uses strange circular motions with his hands to block every attack. Cody can't land a single punch and Eckhart's hands get closer and closer and then Eckhart strikes Cody in the chest with a very compressed palm strike. Cody is sent sprawling back and crashes to the ground. Eckhart grins and gets in the stance again. Cody goes for a kick but it is grabbed with one hand and lifted into the air and Cody is sent into the air and crashes onto his back. Cody rolls out of the way of a punch and lands a hard kick to Eckhart's nose. Eckhart screams as blood emerges from his fingers, which were covering his face. Cody thinks of the line which Mikhail told him '_One hit…that's all it takes'_. Cody quickly follows up with a few hard punches and then a powerful back kick which sends Eckhart flying back and crashing to the ground. Eckhart looks up at Cody and his eyes show rage. He cracks his nose back into place and blood pours freely out from his nose. Eckhart gets to his feet and he extends a hand, the thumb, index and middle fingers in a claw like manner. Cody slowly waits for an attack but there is none so he throws the first strike. Cody is quickly blocked and the claw hand is wrapped around his face and he is shoved right off his feet. Cody goes for another punch when he gets up but Eckhart grabs his arms and they are firmly locked in the vice like grips of Eckhart's fingers.

Zack sees that his brother is starting to lose and he rushes forward and leaps onto Eckhart's back. Eckhart quickly hurls Zack over onto his back and strikes him in the chest. Zack gasps for breath and Eckhart raises his hand and places the fierce claw like grip on Zack's temples and squeezes. Zack yells in pain as he feels deep pain in his skull. Suddenly the pain is gone and Eckhart is on his back. The twins see a wobbly Mikhail on his shaky legs. Eckhart screams in anger and charges Mikhail. Mikhail sees the overhead chop strike which Eckhart was famous for. He raises both hand and traps the strike with both hands. Mikhail kicks Eckhart in the chest and then delivers his infamous ridge hand strike. The Ridge Hand slams into Eckhart's throat and Eckhart spits up blood and collapses to the floor. Mikhail falls onto his back as Eckhart manages to get back to his feet.

"Your best student and strike were not enough to defeat me." Then everything goes black for Eckhart. Zack smashed a 2x4 into the back of Eckhart's head and knocked him right out.

"One hit…is all it takes," Cody mutters to himself and laughs. He gets up and embraces his brother for the first time in a very long while.

(Please review.)


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